This report was commissioned by the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services in anticipation of proposed legislation to establish a corrections commission with authority over a separate department of corrections. The Battelle Law and Justice Study Center was asked to compare the corrections commission or board of corrections structure with the present "umbrella" agency structure (a corrections division in a human services agency) and with a separate department not under a corrections commission. No direct comparison of the present umbrella structure with a separate department without a board is involved. The focus is on corrections operation and on coordination with other agencies. Battelle was also asked to determine whether these comparisons would be affected by such variations in a board's composition and functions as the method of selecting the chairperson and members, length of terms, jurisdiction, and scope of powers. Specific impacts of a board include impacts on operations, communication, and freedom from politics, public visibility and support, responsiveness to long-term problems, and responsiveness to crises. An analytical model is presented in which these impacts are seen as affecting the accountability, efficiency, and effectiveness of a department.
